The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1887-08-19
scenes in Norway.

Nardo is the most easterly town in
Norway, located on an island of the
same name in the Artic ocean, IN latitude
10 degrees 20 minutes 80 seconds north.
4e o separated from the mainland by
channel two miles wide, and contains
population of about 1900. 1t claims
the most northern fort il all the world,
which is garrisoned by sixteen men and
has AZ armament of about an equal num-
Der OF old fashioned cannon, making a
man for each. The keystone OF an arch
over tho entrance to the rampant bears
the date "1T37."
There being two public schools in the
place, and naturally having a curiosity
to visit a seal of learning whose founda-
tions were lashed by the Artic wave, 1
entered the larger of the two by a rear
door, for there was no entrance from
the street nor ut either end. l was
kindly and politely saluted bv the teach
er, and on entering the main room the
pupils arose in body and bowed to me.
y seat was given me and book was
placed in my hand that 1 might follow
the boys and girls through their reading
lesson which was characterized in some
measure by that doieful enuncistion so
often heard in rural schools. The girls
wore the Inevitable handkerchief about
their heads. \ bit of 1.-THE cane in a
corner represented the pedagoge mace.
The rooms on this day, the StE Of July,
were heated by coal stoves. The school
contained four departments, under a
male priu and three assistant fe-
male teachers, all Intelligent and wide
awake. From the principals room I
passed 10 an adjoining one in charge of
a bright and neatly attired young lady,
who required her pupils to sing for me,
and stroye with graceful tact 10 make
the exercises pleasant and intelligible to
enc totally ignorant of the language.
1t was almost pitiful TO see some of the
girls caressing small punches of puuy
dandeiion blossoms that seemed as pre-
cious to them as "a victoria regia would
be to y southern maid. Others were
nursing few sprays Of millefolium in
bottles Of water, and one could only
wonder that so stunted and sparse flora
could beget any love for flowers ar all :;
and yet geranlums and roses in window.
OF the better houses are not uncommon.
Excepting a small and unimportant one
~ liCnmersest, this IS the most northern
school in the world, and after pleasant
hour therein l departed.
The remainder of the day concluded
u sre1d IA visiting the whale ''fabriks -
.Aat IS, the establishments for rendering
whale olu'!sr into oil and transforming
the kIGag licensed carcassesl into artiil-
Gal suano. 7 nave had occasion already
10 mention several Of the most northern
things ia The world : here [ discovered
the most powerful, stencil in all Europe,
and probably il the world, and yet 1
felt willing to brave it 20 witness a dis
section Of levjGthans. There are around
VaEdo fOu: or live establishments, each
haYiug several steam whalers constantly
securing the seas Oft the coast in pursuit
ct whales. Floating in the channel be-
fore the different factories were forty
henssc Cggcasses, some swollen TO enor-
nous proportions. Two large whales,
one seveuty-fve feet in lenght, were
Drawn CUT en- the shore, one with the
bnbber newly removed, the other fresh
from the water. several men mounted
the latter by q LADDER and clambered
about on It's smooth, slippery skin by
means OF sharp spikes attached TO the
so'es OF their boots with plubber knives
two teet in length in long wooden hand
les, they made transverse incisions as
deep as the biubber-about twelveInches
IN this case and five or six feet long. and
then running the cut lougitudinally for
thirty feet, 8 blanket of fat was ready
for removal chain was attached to
the farther end, and by the power of a
windlsss in the factory this prodigious
slab of olubber, weighing several tons,
was slowly torn from the carcass. This
process was Continued till the densing
was completed. In the factory the blub-
Der is cut into small pieces forthe (" fry
ing out" pots. The flesh of the aensed
carcass is then cut down into large pieces
that are dragged and pitched with flesh
hooks 10 small cars 1t is then taken TO
drying furnaces, where 1t is rendered
triable. When she flesh and viscera
lave been removed, the work of chop
ping down the hinty Forest of bones is
The bones are also subjec-
ted to the drying furnace, and when
p-rched are ground together with the
esh into powder, which Is barreled
and shipped TO all parts of Europe as a
fertilizer.